Time is like flowing water, and the years are like turning the pages of a book.

Fast forward a few years.

Yuan Qingya's face became much haggard, and he sat cross-legged near the courtyard, in the corridor of his bedroom, with his head down, his eyes blank.

The autumn sun is a bit bleak.

Not long ago, he had just lost Xing and Achai, and although he finally got them back, he had already carried an unpredictable heavy burden.

He made a deal with an existence he feared so much.

Betrayed...

Freely.

In the silence, there was the sound of light footsteps.

Yuan Qingya's body moved undetectably, and she slowly raised her head.

He told his men that if he wanted to stay alone for a while, there should be no one who disobeyed his wishes, at least not in this city.

What catches my eye is a face that has been absent for a long time.

The girl in a blue and white kimono came gracefully, her makeup and costumes were luxurious enough, and her face was still as calm and elegant as ever, with a bookish atmosphere of everyone's ladies.

Behind her, there are ghost fires flying, and green lights floating in the air, leading the way.

She stared at the somewhat emaciated and frustrated face, and the calm face set off a subtle but obvious ripple.

The lips with the pale cyan lip gloss opened and closed hesitantly a few times, and before he could speak, he could hear the somewhat trembling breathing.

The girl ignored the dust of the kimono, bent down and squatted down, and looked at Yuan Qingya, who was sitting cross-legged.

"I've been waiting."

"I... It's back. ”

Yuan Qingya's gaze, which was originally a little dead, was called out of life by the appearance of the girl in front of her.

With all his might, he smiled reluctantly.

"Welcome back..."

"I..."

He squeezed out a word, and he didn't know what to say, but he just stopped somewhere.

What to say?

He thinks very highly of himself, bows his head before natural disasters, bows his head before man-made disasters, loses the lives of the people around him, and can only use the little dignity and ability he has to exchange them for back.

What is there to say about this.

He, since he came back from the crossing, not to mention the soaring and unparalleled, at least it was smooth sailing, and the setbacks encountered were also successfully resolved, and the road of life was a smooth one.

This defeat really hit him hard.

"I've heard about it, I know it, you're not wrong."

"You just don't want Apricot to die."

"Don't blame yourself, Qingya."

"I went to take a look, things are very strange, why did Achai happen to hear the method of becoming a dog god, and then cut it off on his own?"

"Why is there a shrine in Edo Castle, there are youkai who are haunting, and they just happen to attack the apricots."

“...”

"I'm afraid that someone has been secretly pushing you to this point."

Qing Xing gently held Yuan Qingya's hand and nodded at his confused gaze.

"It's okay, I'm back."

"I'm sorry I wasn't able to be with you at that time, but..."

"No one will be able to calculate you anymore."

"As long as I'm alive!"

The girl's words containing her heart warmed Yuan Qingya's heart, but when she thought of the transaction she had experienced, he could only smile helplessly.

"But... It's late. ”

"I seem to have gone astray."

"You don't know what I've done... I..."

Before he finished his words, he was resolutely interrupted by Qing Xingdeng.

"It's just in time."

"Let's face it together, it's too late..."

"Even if it's too late, I'll go with you."

Yuan Qingya shook her head a little weakly.

"But... I've figured it out. ”

"The end of this road may be... Hell it. ”

"Then, let's go to hell together!"

Qingxinglan didn't give Yuan Qingya a chance to refuse at all, after saying this, she slowly approached him, wrapped her arms around his waist, slowly but forcefully tightened her arms, buried half of her face in Yuan Qingya's chest, and breathed a little greedily in the nostalgic taste of the sun on his body.

"I miss you so much..."

And at this moment, after some lingering words, the space was distorted, and the picture froze, and then shattered.

In the passenger seat of the commercial car, Uesugi Kiyoshi slowly opened his eyes.

"That's all..."

"Whether it's my memory, or the memory fragments on these hundred ghost scrolls, I'm always avoiding something."

"It's the [Gen Kiyoya] trading partner, the last enemy of Heiankyo."

"Interesting... Can't even mention names? ”

"It must be a god."

"I have the ability to turn dead people or animals into monsters, and I signed a contract with my predecessors, which seems to have given me the ability to directly kill ghosts and gods."

"That's... Narugami sword aura. ”

"There are only so many clues..."

"Damn, isn't there no clue at all!"

For the abrupt end of these memory scrolls without saying goodbye, Uesugi Kiyoshi is already very familiar.

It's a little uncomfortable, but he understands it.

In the face of the enemy, there is nothing wrong with being cautious.

Looking at the rearview mirror, Apricot was already sleeping soundly on Towen Maki's shoulder, and Towen Maki was also closing his eyes and pretending to sleep, not knowing whether he was really asleep or meditating.

Uesugi exhaled a cloudy breath and rolled down the window.

The scenery outside the window is no longer desolate on the national highway, and has become a steel jungle in a big city.

This is a sign that it should be almost there.

"Ueno-senpai, how long is it left?"

asked in a low voice, and Miishi Ueno, who was driving, quickly returned: "Uesugi-kun, in half an hour, we will be able to reach Kyoto, how long it will take to get to the place where Master Akutagawa stays, I can't say, it depends on the traffic situation in Kyoto." ”

"If it goes well, you can meet Young Master Akutagawa before three o'clock."

Uesugi Kiyoshi nodded silently, took out his mobile phone from his pocket, kept playing with it, called up the address book, and stared at the few names in a daze.

After a few minutes of hesitation, he pressed the call button.

The busy signal didn't last a few seconds, and the call was connected.

Listening to the slight breathing sound coming from the phone, Uesugi Kiyoshi suddenly couldn't think of what to say.

Fortunately, the other side spoke first.

"Why are you calling me at this time? Got in trouble? ”

Li Fuyao's somewhat gentle voice came over.

Uesugi Kiyoshi took a deep breath and whispered, "No... I'm almost in Kyoto and want to say hello to you. ”

"Oh, I know, it's because of the attack on Akutagawa?"

"I'm investigating that matter, it's a little weird, since you're here, let's wait until we meet."

"I have a meeting to attend later, I'll send you my address, you go about your business first, and wait for us to meet sometime."

"I've been thinking about it for the past few days, Akutagawa should also ask for help, you guess you're coming, and sure enough, I was waited."

Uesugi Kiyoshi didn't answer, just listened silently, thinking of the girl who chattered beside him thousands of years ago, but arranged everything in an orderly manner, and subconsciously sighed.

"A thousand years, right?"

“...”

"Why are you obsessed with me?"

He was moved, but Li Fuyao's voice stopped.

On the other side, in front of the floor-to-ceiling windows of the skyscraper, Li Fuyao was wearing a black dress with a little powder, looking at the scenery outside the window, holding his mobile phone, and his expression suddenly froze.

After a few seconds, a relieved smile crept up the corners of his mouth.

"I..."

"Am I obsessed with you?"